Heat insulating cabinet or file



Aug. 26, 1941. J. R. JONES 2,253,564

HEAT INSULATING CABINET OR FILE Filed April 25, 19:59 a Sheets-Sheet 1 A Q gb ygs No INVENTOR M P M, QM f ATTO R N EYS g, 26, 1941. J. R. JONES 2,253,564

HEAT INSULATING CABINET 0R FILE Filed April 25, 1939 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 4K INVENTOR 45L 9 2 ,,M

ATTORNEYS 6, 1941-. J. R. JONES 2,253,564

HEAT INSULATING CABINET OR FILE Filed April 25, 1939 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR ATTORNEYS Patented Aug. 26, 1941 nus-r msurnrmd CABINET'OB. FILE James R. Jones, Lakewood, N. 1., assignor to'Art Metal Construction Company, Jamestown,"

Application April 25, 1939, Serial No. 269,?29.

. 6 Claims.

.ments of drawer files of this nature having drawers arranged one above another, with each drawer when shut, enclosed in a separate compartment surrounded by heat insulating or fire resisting walls .to protect the contents of the drawers from injury by fire.

One object of theinvention is to provide a cabinet or file of'this sort, of desirable and economical construction, which will effectually protect its contents frominjury by heat or fire.

Other objects of the invention are to provide separate preconstructed compartment units having walls of heat insulating or fire resisting construction which are adapted for use singly or to be stacked one upon another to produce a .cabinet having one, two or more compartments, as desired; to provide compartment units each consisting of a hollow body of heat insulating br fire resisting material open at one end, which units can be individually molded, and are adapted for use singly or in stacks of two or more units; to provide acabinet or drawer file comprising in its construction a hollow compartment body of heat insulating or fire resisting material open at one end and having an inner metal casing or I lining which provides a support for a drawer and has a rim that covers and protects the edges of the insulation body at the open or front end thereof.

With these and other objects and advantages hereinafter explained, in view, preferredembodiments of the invention, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, are hereinafter described and the novel features of the invention are set forth in the appended claims.

In said drawings:

Fig. 1 is a front elevation, on a reduced scale, of a heat insulating multiple drawer file emb dying the invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation, partly in section thereof, showing a drawer in the bottom compartment only of the cabinet.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary, front elevation, partly in section, of the cabinet.

Figs. 4 and 5 are horizontal, sectional views thereof on lines 4-4 and 5-5 respectively, Fig. 3.

Fig. 6 is a vertical, longitudinal, sectional elevation of the cabinet on a larger scale than Fig. 2, but for the sake of simplicity, showing only two stacked compartment units.

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary, transverse, sectional elevation thereof on line 'l-l, Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary, sectional plan view thereof on line 8-8, Fig, 6. I

Fig. 9 is a full-size, fragmentary, vertical, sectional elevation through the front end of one of the drawers and the adjacent unit parts.

Fig. 10 is a-full-size, fragmentary, horizontal section showing the construction of the interfitting rim formation of the drawer front and edge of the drawer compartment.

Fig. 11 is a broken, transverse section through one of the drawers looking toward the front, and with the parts of the drawer front broken away to show the latch.

Fig. 12 is a side elevation, partly broken away,

on a reduced scale, showing alternative means for securing the stacked units together.

Fig. 13 is a fragmentary, sectional plan thereof on line I3l3, Fig. 12.

As shown in the drawings, the cabinet comprises like superposed or stacked compartment units it, each in the form of a hollow body of heat insulating or fire resisting material of any I suitable composition having back, bottom, top

and side walls, and open at the front end, and made with an inner metal lining or casing on which guides or tracks for the sliding drawer of the unit may be mounted or provided. These Vifhile this compartment unit construction is primarily desirable for multiple drawer files comprising a stack of two or more superposed units,

a single unit can be furnished with the outer" metal casing and used alone as a single compartment cabinet.

The inner metal casing may be of any suitable construction, being formed, for instance, by top' and bottom sheet metal plates l5 and II, side plates ll having top and bottom flanges embracing the adjacent edges of the top and bottonr plates, and a back end plate I8 which extends transversely between the top and bottom plates, which have inbent flanges overlappingjtheadjacent edges of the end plate. The several plates forming the inner casing may be suitably welded to each other and may be perforated to facilitate the drying of the molded insulation ofthe unit. Preferably the units are, of substantially rectangular form in plan and in both longitu's dinal and transverse vertical cross section, and may be made by placing each inner casing in a mold and pouring the insulating material while in a fluent condition in the mold around the inner casing, so that the insulation body of the unit is formed in a single integral casting.

As shown, the units are formed so that when placed one upon another, parts of the contacting walls of the units will nest or interflt for registering the units one directly above the other. For instance, each unit may be provided externally on its top with a shallow, raised portion l9 adapted to enter a shallow depression 20 in the bottom of the next unit above. The insulation walls of each unit may be reinforced, as shown, by wire mesh material or other suitable reinforcements 2| enbedded in the material when molding the unit.

At its open front end, the metal unit lining shown is provided with outbent flanges 23 which extend around the front end of the lining and, together with supplemental top, bottom and side metal rim members 24,- 25 and 26, joined to the flanges 23, form an outwardly projecting rim that covers and protects the front edges of the insulating body of the unit. The bottom rim member 25 is preferably a channel strip provided at the rear edge of its top wall with an upwardly projecting flange 21 which may be spot welded to the rim flange 23 at the bottom of the unit. The top rim member 24, shown, see Figs. 6 and 9, is an angle strip having a down-tumed flange at its rear edge which may be spot welded to the adjacent flange 23 of the lining, and a forwardly projecting top flange. When one unit is placed on top of another, the bottom of the channel member 25 at the bottom of the upper unit will rest and bear upon the forwardly projecting flange of the top rim member 24 at the front of the lower unit. The channel member 25, which projects forwardly at the 'bottom of the front end of the unit, forms a horizontal divider or separating bar at the front of the cabinet between adjacent compartments and, as will be more apparent hereafter, preferably projects forwardly substantially to the front edges of the side walls of the cabinet, between the fronts or heads of the superposed drawers in adjacent compartments. The side rim members 26 are preferably of channel shape, best shown in Fig. 8, and may be spot welded to the lining side flanges 23. The metal front rim of the compartment unit, formed as described, is preferably bent or shaped to provide a peripheral tongue and grooved rim formation-to interflt with a complementary peripheral formation on the drawer front or head to insure a fireproof closure of the compartment when the drawer is closed. Each of the channel divider member 25 preferably has an insulation filling 28, which may be formed either by an integral, forwardly projecting portion of the bottom wall of the unit body, or by a separate body of insulating material.

A multiple compartment cabinet is formed by securing two or more of the compartment units thus constructed, one upon another, as shown, with-the lowermost unit secured upon a heat insulating base 30, and a heat insulating top section 3| secured on top of the uppermost unit, and providing upright metal side and rear plates which cooperate with metal covering plates on the base and top section to form an outer metal shell or casing which covers and protects the insulation bodies of the units and gives the desired finished appearance to the cabinet. A shown,

the base 30 comprises a body 32 of insulating ma- 75 terlal, cast or formed in a metal shell or cover, which comprises a bottom wall 33 and upwardly projecting front and rear flanges 34 and 35, and side flanges 33. The front flange 34 extends to and has its upper edge bent or extending inwardly over the top edge of the insulation 32, as shown at 31. Similarly, the top section comprises a body 33 of insulating material cast or formed in a metal shell or covering comprising a top plate 39 and downwardly extending front and rear flanges 40 and 4|, and side flanges 42. The front flange 40 extends to and is bent or extends inwardly under the bottom front edge of the insulation 38, and the lower edges of the side flanges 42 are also bent to extend under the bottom side edges of the insulation 38, as shown at 43, Fig. 7.

Metal side plates 44 are shown covering the compartment units at opposite sides of the cabinet, and a metal back plate 45 covering the insulation units at the rear of the cabinet, these side and rear plates joining the metal plates of the base and top section to form the outer metal shell or casing of the cabinet. The side plates 44 shown have bottom end flanges 46 which extend inwardly under the side edges of the metal base plate 33, and upper end flanges 41 which extend inwardly over the upper edges of the uppermost compartment unit. The upstanding inner edges of flanges 41 are adapted to enter grooves 48 in the bottom of the top section 3| adjacent its side edges when the top section is put in place, to assist in holding it in position on the uppermost compartment unit. At their front vertical edges, the side casing plates are preferably bent inwardly and rearwardly, forming channel flange 49 which embrace the metal covered front edges of the side walls of the compartment units. The side plates 44 can be slid rearwardly into place at the sides of the stacked units and retained in place by connecting their upright rear edges with the side edges of the rear casing plate 45, as by interlocking slide joints 43a see Fig. 8, which adapt the rear plate 45 to be slid downwardly into place in connection with the side plates. The lower end of the rear casing plate is adapted to enter a groove formed between the upturned rear flange of the base plate 33 and an angle strip 50 welded to the base plate, and when the top section 3| is placed in position on the uppermost unit, the upper end of the rear casing plate is adapted to be received in a similarly formed groove 5| at the rear end of the top plate, as shown in Fig. 6. Thus, when the top section is secured in place on the uppermost unit, the several parts of the outer casing will interflt or interlock with each other and they may be welded as required, to securely join the parts together in place about the stacked units and thus cooperate in 1liiiolding the units firmly in their intended rela- The stacked compartment units may be secured one upon another, the lowermost unit secured on the cabinet base 30 and the top section 3| secured on top of the uppermost compartment unit by suitable means. These means, as shown in Figs. 6 and 7, consist of bolts 52 passing through the top wall of each unit and the bottom wall of the next unit above and fastened by nuts 53; bolts 54 passing through the bottom wall of the lowermost unit and screwed into threaded holes in anchoring pieces 55 embedded in the insulation of the base, and bolts 56 passing through the top of the uppermost unit and screwed into anchoring pieces 51 embedded in the insulation of the top section. Instead of such separate bolts securing each ably holding the drawer closed, and Figs. 9 and 11 passing through the several units and the top base sections at the corners of the cabinet and secured by nuts screwed on the lower ends of the tie bolts.

The cabinet drawers may be of any usual or suitable construction, but preferably each'drawer is made with a front end or head of heat insulating or fire resisting construction and having peripheral, edges of tongue and groove or other suitable formation adapted to intermesh with the complementary edge formation at the front end of the drawer compartment so as to insure proper closure of the compartment and prevent the passage of flame or hot gases through the joint between the drawer head and the front end of the drawer compartment when the drawer is closed.

For this purpose, as shown, the front end or head of the drawer, see Figs. 9 and 11, comprises a metal front plate 60 provided with rearwardly extending edge flanges to which a metal rim member Si is welded, thus providing a shallow metal shell in which a body or slab 62 of suitable heat insulating or fire resisting material is molded or cast. The peripheral edges of this insulating body are covered and protected by the metal rim formed by the front plate flanges and member 6 I, and this rim is preferably shaped to provide a peripheral tongue and groove formation adapted to interfit with the tongue and groove formation at the front end of the compartment unit. The rear or inner side of the insulation body is covered by a metal plate 63 which may be suitably secured at its edges to the rim 6|, as for instance, by slipping the side and top edges of the cover plate 63 into grooves formed between the inbent flanges of the rim and metal strips 64 welded in the rim, and fastening the bottom edge of the plate, as by screws, to the bottom part of the rim. The body of cover plate 63, as shown, is offset rearwardly and spaced from the insulation body 62, and the bottom and side walls of the drawer are secured at their front ends, as by welding, to the bottom and side edges of this inwardly offset body of the plate. The drawer may be supported and guided in its in and out sliding movements in the drawer compartment by suitable guides or tracks 65 which may be formed by metal bars of channel or other suitable shape, secured by welding or otherwise to the side walls of the inner metal lining or casing of the drawer compartment.

As usual in vertical stack drawer files, the several drawers may be locked in closed position by locking mechanism, including a locking bar common to the several drawers and actuated by a single lock-controlled operating member. Such a common locking bar, which is shown at 66 in Fig. 2. may extend vertically at one side of the several drawers through holes 61, (see Fig. 4) in the top and bottom unit walls which form the horizontal partitions between the superposed drawer compartments and move in vertical guide channels or grooves 68 formed in the side plates of the metal linings of the units at that side of the cabinet at which the locking bar is located. Any usual or suitable members actuated by this vertical bar to lock the drawers and any suitable operating and locking means for the bar may be employed.

In addition to this locking mechanism, each drawer may be provided with a latch for releasshow such a latch, consisting of a latch arm 69 secured to the inner end of a rock shaft or spindle 10 which passes through the drawer head and is provided with an operating handle II at its outer end, the bevelled free end of the latch or arm being arranged to project below the bottom edge of the drawer head and cooperate with a keeper II in the bottom of the drawer compartment. Since the drawer latch does not form part of the invention herein claimed, further description thereof is unnecessary.

The described unit construction of the cabinet enables the compartment units to be separately constructed and carried in stockand assembled into the outer metal casings to supply cabinets of different capacities, having one, two or more compartments or drawers, as required. Each unit has a single-piece cast or monolithic hollow body of fire resisting material, and can be readily and conveniently cast or molded with the minimum labor. The units, being small, are much lighter and easier to handle than a full-size cabinet body which would be much larger and heavier. Considerable time is required to cure and season molded insulating material of the sort employed, to drive out its excess moisture, and small units offer advantage, in that they can be cured in less time and they can be conveniently carried in stock, cured and ready for assembly into whichever height cabinets may be required. Inasmuch as the units, as made, are not encased or covered exteriorly, their drying or curing is expedited, since only the lesser interior surfaces of the insulation are covered and the greater outer surfaces are left exposed to the air, and the metal linings of the units can be made with holes or perforations to further speed up the drying out of the insulation. While each compartment is surrounded by thick insulating walls, giving great heat insulating efficiency and protection against fire, each partition between compartments is formed by the superposed top and bottom walls of adjacent units, each of which walls is approximately only one-half the thickness of the partition. This further facilitates the economy and convenience of construction and curing of the units, and the same applies to the cabinet base and top sections.

I claim as my invention:

1. A heat insulating cabinet comprising a monolithic hollow cast body of heat insulating material open at its front end, a metal rim covering the front rim of said hollow body but leaving bare the remaining exterior surfaces of the body, base and top sections, secured respectively on the bottom and top of said unit and each comprising a slab of heat insulating material and a metal sheath covering the outside face and. edges of the slab, said top section and the topwall of said hollow body each being approximately half as thick as the back and side walls of said body so that the top insulating wall of the cabinet formed by said top section and the top wall of said hollow body will have approximately the same thickness as the back and side insulating walls of the cabinet, and a metal sheath covering the external side and back surfaces of said hollow body and joined to the metal sheaths of the base and top sections and also to said metal rim to complete an outer metal casing for the cabinet.

2. A multiple compartment heat insulating cabinet comprising separate compartment units stacked one upon another, each unit having a hollow cast body of heat insulating material open at its front end, and a metal rim covering the front rim of said hollow body but leaving said insulating material exposed at and forming the exterior side and back surfaces of said unit, base and top sections of metal sheathed heat insulating material secured respectively on the bottom and top of said stack of units, the top and bottom walls of said hollow units being of less thickness than their side and back walls such that the partition and top and bottom insulating walls of the cabinet formed by the stacked units and said top and bottom sections will have a thickness approximating that of the other walls of the cabinet, and a single metal sheath exteriorly covering the back and sides of all of the units of said stack and joined to said metal sheaths of the base and top sections and to said metal unit rims to complete a single outer metal casing covering and protecting said stacked insulating units.

3. A multiple compartment heat insulating cabinet comprising separate compartment units stacked one upon another, each unit consisting of a hollow molded body of heat insulating material open at its front end, and a metal rim covering the front rim of said hollow body but leaving the remaining exterior surfaces of the body bare, the portions of the metal covered front rim at the bottom and sides of each unit body projecting forwardly beyond the portion of th rim at the top of the body to form forwardly projecting compartment-division bars and side stiles, said externally bare units being secured directly one upon another, heat insulatnig base and top sections secured respectively on the bottom and top of said stack of units and each having a metal sheath covering the outer side and edges of the section, and a single metal sheath covering the side and back surfaces of all of the units of said stack, said metal sheaths being joined to each other and joining the metal front rims of the unit bodies to complete an outer metal casing for the cabinet.

4. A multiple compartment heat insulating cabinet comprising separate compartment units stacked one upon another, each unit consisting of a hollow molded body of heat insulating material open at its front end, and a metal rim covering the front rim of said hollow body but leaving the remaining exterior surfaces of the body bare, the portions of the metal covered front rim at the bottom and sides of each unit body projecting forwardly beyond the portion of the rim at the top of the body to form forwardly projecting compartment-division bars and side sti1es,-said externally bare units being secured directly one upon another, and a single outer metal casing covering the exterior surfaces .of all of the compartment units and Joining the metal front rims of the compartment unit bodies.

5. A heat insulating cabinet comprising a monolithic hollow cast body of heat insulating material open at its front end, a metal rim covering the front rim of said hollow body but leaving bare the remaining exterior surfaces of the body, the portions of the metal covered front rim at the bottom and sides of said unit body projecting forwardly beyond the portion of the rim at the top of the body to form a forwardly projecting sill and side stiles, base and top sections secured respectively at the bottom and top of said unit and each comprising a slab of heat insulating material projecting forwardly approximately as far as the projecting bottom and sides of said unit body, a metal sheath covering the outside face and edges of th slab, and a metal sheath covering the external side and back surfaces of said hollow body and Joining the metal sheaths of the base and top sections and also said metal rim to complete an outer unitary metal casing for the cabinet.

6. A multiple compartment heat insulating cabinet comprising separate compartment units stacked one upon another, each unit having a hollow cast body of heat insulating material open at its front end, and a metal rim covering the front rim of said hollow body but leaving said insulating material exposed at and forming the exterior side and back surfaces of said unit, base and top sections of cast heat insulating material secured respectively on the bottom and top of said stack of units, the top and bottom walls of said hollow units and said top section being approximately half as thick as the side and back walls of the hollow units so that the partition and top, back and side insulating walls of the cabinet formed by the stacked units and said top and bottom sections will be of approximately the same thickness, and a single outer metal casing covering and protecting the exposed exterior surfaces of all of the compartment units and of the baseand top sections and Joining the metal front rims of said hollow unit bodies.

JAIVIES R. JONES. 

